Amritsar-based turban trainer Balwinder Singh says actors, makers maintained respect & discipline that Dastar commands during the shoot
28 March, 2026 – Amritsar : The success of Aditya Dhar’s blockbuster Dhurandhar is generally seen as significant for small artistes, actors and people from Amritsar, who were part of it in one way or the other. Though success and elation is now about their 15 minutes of fame, it represents a combination of inspiration, opportunity and visibility.
One such young entrepreneur from city, Balwinder Singh, too has found a sense of pride in the success of Dhurandhar. Why? Because Balwinder is the man behind the authentic, neat Dastar (turban) that Ranveer Singh as Jaskirat wore in the film. Not just him, but Balwinder, a turban trainer, tied turbans for all characters, who sported one in both the films.
“I tied Afghani style and Baloch style turbans for characters in Dhurandhar and later Sikh Dastar for Ranveer Singh, freestyle turban for Atiq’s character and also Punjabi style saafa for Pinda and other characters,” shared Balwinder, who runs his own turban studio Inder Pagri House at Kot Khalsa.
Balwinder has previously worked with actor Anupam Kher in Calorie, a Canadian-Indian film before being contacted by the makers of Dhurandhar.
“Aditya Dhar was impressed by how I tied the Punjabi Dastar, the authentic semi-Patiala Shahi wattan wali pagg (turban) that Ranveer’s character sports in the film. I feel that previously, Bollywood films did not show Dastar in an authentic way and with the respect it commands. While working on the film, I told the crew that we will follow maryada of Dastar. We used to tie Dastar and after the scene, untie it, keep it aside with respect to ensure its maryada. It’s not a fashion accessory, it deeply sacred for us,” said Balwinder.
He is all praise for Ranveer Singh, who he said was always mindful while wearing Dastar. On the work front, Dhurandhar, said Balwinder was a learning experience for him. “I did not know how to tie Baloch style turban, which uses 16-17 metre running piece of cloth and required a lot of specific folds and ties. I was shown photos and videos after which I learnt to tie freestyle Baloch turbans as well,” he said.
Balwinder said currently, the most popular forms of turbans among youngsters were Patiala Shahi, Barnala Shahi, Amritsari wattan wali Dastar and the very popular Sidhu Moosewala style wattan wali freestyle turban.
The Tribune